Abstract
The primary purpose of this prospective 12-week intervention study was to measure the impact of a 12-week worksite wellness program on weight loss and improvement in blood pressure (BP), total cholesterol, serum glucose, waist circumference (WC), waist-hip ratio (WHR), and lifestyle habits among adult employees on the urban campus of a health sciences university. All participants attended 12 weekly group sessions with a registered dietitian and met individually with a registered dietitian at baseline and weeks 6 and 12. At baseline and week 12, anthropometric and hematologic parameters and BP were measured. The main outcome measures were changes in weight, WC, total cholesterol, serum glucose, BP, WHR, and body mass index (BMI). Using statistical package for the social science (SPSSv)14.0for data entry and analysis, frequency distributions, paired t tests, Pearson and point biserial correlation coefficients, and simple linear regression were employed. Of the 147 individuals enrolled, 82% completed the program. Mean baseline BMI is 33. Paired t tests demonstrated significant reductions in weight (P = .0005), BMI (P = .0005), WC (P = .0005), WHR (P = .002), cholesterol (P = .0005), and BP (P = .021 systolic, P = .006 diastolic). Weight reduction was significantly correlated with reduction in systolic BP (r = 0.310, P = .001), diastolic BP (r = 0.226, P = .016), % body fat (r = 0.234, P = .012), and cholesterol (r = 0.211, P = .023). Significant improvements in outcome measures were achieved. The results support worksite wellness interventions in the academic health sciences setting.